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Thursday, March 10, 2005

My first visit to Rome Day 1 Part 7

Trajan's column is just a short walk from the Victor Emanuel Monument. Although it presently has scaffolding around the base I was still able to get some great shots of the sculptured images with my 12X zoom lens. The difficult part is trying to remember where you are on the monument to take the next successive photograph.

I had been anxious to see Trajan's column ever since I attended a lecture on Trajan and the Dacian Wars. I was certainly not disappointed. This is a period of Roman history I hope to learn more about and it is exciting to see the events depicted in so much detail on the column shaft.

"The upper parts of the Column were designed to be seen not from the ground level but from the galleries of the buildings which originally stood around it. A statue of the emperor himself once stood on the summit; the present statue of St Peter dates only from 1588. The base of the Column is a massive cube containing a number of small rooms, the innermost of which was Trajan's tomb chamber. Cremation was still the customary rite among high-ranking Romans during this period. Two holes drilled in the rear wall of the room may have been intended to hold the funerary urns of Trajan and his wife Plotina."

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I am passionate about technology, education and history, particularly ancient history. I am constantly exploring ways to use technology to enhance the learning environment and am particularly ecstatic when I can develop a technology to advance the study of ancient history.Follow me on Twitter! Comments or Questions: mharrsch@uoregon.edu

Quotation of the Day

Artist/Historian George S. Stuart Honors Olympics with Manchu Figures

To honor the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the Gallery of Historical Figures is hosting the highly-acclaimed Manchu Dynasty Historical Figures® of sculptor and historian George Stuart. Until now, the unique 26-piece group could only be seen in museum exhibits. "What better time to recognize recent Chinese history and to share a westerner's view of it?" said Stuart.

The Manchu Dynasty collection begins with Nurachi, who defeated the ailing Ming Dynasty in 1616 and ends in 1967 with the death of Pu Yi, the last emperor. The 350-year interval is represented by emperors, other royalty, courtesans, warlords, military, reformers, peasants and more. Pictured here is the ill-fated Taiping Emperor Hung Hsiu Ch'üan, self-acclaimed "Brother of Christ".

To assure maximum possible historical accuracy, Stuart collaborated with LU Zhengliang Arts Studio in Suzhou, China on many of the Manchu Historical Figures. LU located and studied many of the original robes and then embroidered the quarter-scale designs on specially selected fabrics.

I was privileged to design the website for artist/historian George Stuart's Gallery of Historical Figures. Mr. Stuart's meticulously detailed historical figures reflect his dedication to accuracy and obvious passion for his subjects.